Not Just BS (Breakfast Symposium)
Date: 2 October 2025
Venue: Playhouse Theatre, 5-7 Artillery Street, Derry- Londonderry, Co Londonderry, BT48 6RG
As part of Bounce Arts Festival,'Not Just BS' is a disabled-led networking, discussion and performance forum for artists and activists developed around this year's festival theme 'Not Just…' on the importance of disability representation, diversity, and intersectionality in the arts sector.
Not Just BS is a disabled-led networking, discussion and performance forum for artists and activists developed around this year's festival theme 'Not Just…' on the importance of disability representation, diversity, and intersectionality in the arts sector.
Programme Highlights:
Music from Colm Herron, a disabled musician from Derry who released his debut album 'Bottles in the Rain' in 2023.
'Divergently Together': talk by Alan Burns. Alan is a neurodivergent, environmental and audiovisual artist, curator and festival maker producing interactive, socially engaged and site-specific projects. Their highly collaborative practice focuses on disability, climate emergency and a just society.
Abby Oliveira: Spoken word artist Abby will present a 10 minute excerpt of the play she is currently writing with funding she received from the Deaf Disabled Artist Support Fund through University of Atypical.
Panel chaired by Mel Bradley. Mel is a multidisciplinary neurodivergent artist, activist, writer, and performer with a strong history of working with diverse cultural backgrounds and challenging perceptions of the queer disabled female voice.
Panellists:
Alan Burns is a neurodivergent, environmental and audiovisual artist from Disrupt Arts Festival in Ireland.
Soso Ní Cheallaigh is a multidisciplinary maker from Derry. Their work spans poetry, essay, theatre, visual art, and film through both the English and Irish language.
Dave Duggan lives in Derry, where he writes in English and in Irish. He works in theatre, film and writes novels and essays.
Justine Scoltock was born and raised in Derry, where she works across visual art, film, and interactive media, Justine is also a committed community facilitator who supports underrepresented voices to tell their stories.
Catherine Hemelryk is a curator and is Director of Centre for Contemporary Art in Derry~Londonderry. She describes herself as a dyslexic, queer, cis woman who is passionate about widening inclusion in sports, culture, and activism.
Edel Murphy, is CEO and Artistic Director of University of Atypical, and a disabled, queer, Donegalian, Gaeilgeoir who has worked across the arts sector in Northern Ireland.
Tea, coffee, and refreshments from 10:15 am.